A Thief In The Night
by letsbuildafortoutofsheets
Summary: Blaine is the Prince of a suffering kingdom. Kurt has to steal to make sure his family survives, he blames the kingdom's poverty on the royal family and hates them all. One day they meet under unlikely circumstances and their story progresses from there.
1. Chapter 1

**So this is the first big thing I've written in a long time and I'm really busy this semester so I really shouldn't be posting this yet but I couldn't wait. I'm not sure how often I'll update it over the next couple months but I have the whole thing planned out so I think it will go well. I'm also going to be posting this to Tumblr and Scarves & Coffee if I can work that out. Hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Obviously I don't own anything and I'm not making any money of of this.**

* * *

"Excuse me how much are the apples?" Kurt asked an old lady who was standing behind a cart in the busy marketplace.

"Three bronze pieces each." she declared in a raspy voice that suggested her appearance represented her age correctly, but Kurt wasn't a fool, he wouldn't give in to her prices just because she appeared vulnerable.

"Three bronze each?" he declared in disbelief. "It wouldn't cost that much for five apples a few years ago!" he argued but she gave him a stern look.

"I'm sorry young man but times are tough and The King is raising the taxes again." she explained and Kurt flashed a look up to the elaborate castle where the royal family lived, never paying any attention to the common folk down here. They lived in a comfortable wealth and when that was threatened they sucked more money out of the citizens below who had nothing.

"I don't control the taxes, please there are four people in my family and I only have enough for two of your fruits." he tried to plead. She looked sympathetic but Kurt could tell already she would not change her mind on the price.

"I'm sorry my dear but we all must stay alive." she told him holding out her hand.

"That we must." he agreed bitterly placing only three bronze pieces in her palm.

"Only one then son?" she asked surprised.

"Yes." Kurt answered quietly not able to look the lady in the eye.

"Well, we'll have to give you a nice big juicy one won't we?" she tittered lightly and picked out the best one she could see, handing it to Kurt with a smile.

"Thank you." he muttered taking the apple and running off back to his home. His stepbrother and his dad were at someone's house making repairs to their cart and his step-mother was helping to tend to a couple of sick children so he was alone in the tiny, dirt floored building. He quickly put the apple on the table before changing into an outfit of all black and wrapping his light blue cloak over top. He grabbed a sac and put the hood up to cover his face before slipping back out into the village.

He dove immediately into the shadows and circled the long way around the town so as not to come from the way he had just left. Walking past all the buildings, most caving in on themselves and being held together with creative and sad looking items. Roofs patched with straw that was sure to let in the rain, old sacs being hung in front of doorways where no door stood, the owners probably having to sell it to pay the monstrous taxes or use it for firewood in the winter. As he reached the marketplace once more he felt a pit in the bottom if his stomach no doubt caused by his guilt. The market was packed with people, all yelling and shoving to try to get some scraps of overpriced food so no one noticed Kurt's cloaked face weaving his way through. His hand would quickly dart out every once in a while to swipe a piece of fruit, or an egg, or a loaf of bread. He hated taking from these people without paying but as the old lady said, they all must stay alive.

As soon as he had collected enough to get his family through the next few days he quickly walked to the edge of the market, looking back briefly at all the people, most of whom hadn't eaten a proper meal in a long time and all of which definitely hadn't taken a bath for longer and he shook his head. The disgust he felt for what he had done was nothing compared to the disgust he felt for the royal family when he saw the scene before him. He knew the leaders of their kingdom were worthless and selfish, he had decided that long before they increased the taxes, but when all these people were suffering right under their noses he realized how much he really loathed them. He crept back to his house sticking to the shadows, usually he doesn't stop for anything but today he sees something that he simply cannot ignore.

Two children, a girl and a boy, both of whom couldn't be older than eight were sitting in front of their home, if you could call it that. Their windows and door were gone and the shingles that once adorned the roof were replaced completely with straw. All of the paint on the walls had peeled off and they were starting to discolour in a way that suggested mold. The children themselves didn't look much better, all skin and bones and playing with a handful of sticks tied together with some rope in a way that was supposed to resemble a doll. The thing was though, they still seemed happy, singing and laughing while they played. Kurt slowly removed his hood and approached them with a smile.

"No Stevie you need to make the prince and the princess dance!" The girl was scolding her brother Kurt assumed, they both had bright blonde hair.

"But why can't they fight?" The boy- Stevie- asked.

"Because they love each other!" She explained with a tone that made sure Stevie knew how ridiculous she thought his idea was.

"Hey guys, what are you up to?" Kurt asked crouching down beside them. They both looked at him with wide eyes like no one had stopped to talk with them before, which he supposed was probably true.

"We're playing prince and princess." The girl said quietly.

"Sounds like fun!" Kurt said enthusiastically. "What are your names?" he asked them.

"I'm Stacy and this is Stevie!" Stacy replied louder than before, although Stevie hadn't taken his eyes off the ground since Kurt had arrived.

"That's awesome!" Kurt said, and then with a glance at his bag full of food he made a split decision. "Are you guys hungry?" he asked and both of their heads shot up, their eyes once again as wide as saucers.

"Yeah." Stacy answered with Stevie nodding his head frantically from beside her.

"Okay." Kurt said taking his sac and removing the loaf of bread he had stolen, he ripped it in half and then one of the halves into quarters. He gave Stacy and Stevie each a quarter and then took out one of the apples he had stolen, they came from the same lady that he had bought the one single apple from before. He took his handy dagger from his pocket, luckily the kids were too busy savouring the bread to noticing what he was doing, he wouldn't want to scare them. He cut the apple in half and handed them one each. "Don't eat it too quickly now." he warned them but he was ignored as they feasted.

Giving one last chuckle and a shake of his head, he left them to eat. Returning to the shadows to get back home, sighing to himself. He had just given away half of the bread and one of the four apples his family needed for the next few days, but that wasn't what was bothering him. What was bothering him was that the only way for poor children to get food was for strangers to offer it to them and the only way for strangers to get the food was to steal it from people who were just as poor as they were. Kurt shook his head and once again looked up at the castle. He had considered taking from the people he should really be taking from before, he was the best thief in the village and if anyone could do it he could, but he had always been too scared to try. Seeing those children however had given him a better perspective of what was happening in this kingdom. He nodded to himself, making a decision. He would rob from the royal palace, when or of what he didn't know, but he would take _something_ that was for sure. If only to bring a little justice for the people.

* * *

Blaine examined himself in the full length mirror, tugging on the lapels of the coats and turning sideways. He held his hand out to the servant, a young girl with tanned skin and long brown hair who was one of the few shorter than Blaine himself, and she handed him the other jacket he was considering.

"Green seems to have excellent details near the cuffs, but I'm pretty sure the blue fits me better." he commented, examining the blue jacket in his hands and looking back at the green he was wearing. "What do you think Rachel?" he asked the young girl who looked startled for a moment.

"Well I have heard word that Princess Quinn will be wearing red, so I would suggest the blue as not to resemble Christmas sir." she commented confidently. Blaine smiled to her a bit, most of the servants were too nervous to give their opinions, they would simply reply with a quiet "Whatever you would prefer your highness." but Rachel always told the truth.

"Excellent observation, the blue it is!" He said with a smile shrugging off the current jacket and putting on the chosen. Rachel took the other one from him and started to fold it neatly. As she was leaving and Blaine trying to tame his wild hair The King, Blaine's father, strode into the room nodding shortly to Rachel who curtsied in his presence.

"If I could have a word alone with my son?" He asked.

"Certainly your highness." Rachel responded and then swiftly left the room.

"Looking handsome today son." The King said gruffly, it was unlike him to comment on Blaine's appearance which made The Prince uneasy.

"Thank you father." He replied, turning around to face the man. King Franklin looked a lot like Blaine, same jawline, same eyebrows, same curly hair but The Prince had acquired his hazel eyes and his height from his mother.

"It's a good thing, wouldn't want to disappoint Princess Quinn." he said.

"I suppose." Blaine commented, slightly confused. The Fabrays were the royal family of the next Kingdom over and Quinn had been his only friend during childhood other than stable boys and house servants. He had known her for such a long time and never thought she would be disappointed in the way he presented himself.

They are going to be staying with us for quite a while." Franklin said. "You are fond of Quinn aren't you?" he asked. Blaine was confused for a second, of course he was fond of Quinn they had grown up together.

"Yes, of course." he answered and his father nodded.

"Good, because you must marry her." The King said bluntly and the smile dropped off Blaine's face.

"Marry her?" he exclaimed.

"Yes." The other man replied, his face blank.

"But- but I don't love her!" Blaine spluttered out in disbelief. "At least not like that."

"Blaine, marriage isn't about love!" Franklin said with a small chuckle as if Blaine had just told him he wanted to grow a pair of wings and fly. "It's a business deal. It's no secret our Kingdom is losing money but the Fabrays are very rich and this union will ensure our people security."

"Dad please-" Blaine argued but his father held up a hand to silence him.

"This is not open to discussion." the man said firmly, Blaine dropped his eyes to the floor. The King let out a long sigh before pulling a chair up beside his son. "I know you may not be the happiest right now but Quinn is a lovely young woman and there are a lot worse people to marry out there." he tried to reason with Blaine. His dad has a point, like he had said before Quinn was his best friend and spending every day with his best friend couldn't be that bad. Still, he didn't feel like he wanted to kiss Quinn or anything else that marriage implies, but he didn't have a say in the matter. His father had decided and his father's word was law... literally.

"It will all work out for the better, you'll see." The King said, giving his son a reassuring pat on the knee as he left the room. Leaving Blaine to sit and stare out the window, watching the horses graze out in the field and wishing that he could be more like them. Never having to worry about any of this marriage and family and money stuff.

* * *

Kurt's palms were sweating, he had never been this nervous in his life. He was laying in the back of a supply cart headed for the castle under some sacs of apples, wearing his trusty blue cloak. The cart shook violently as it rolled along the mangled dirt path but Kurt suspected that wasn't the reason he felt so sick. Sneaking into the castle unauthorized would be sure to get him thrown in the dungeon for at least ten years and if they caught him trying to steal something he would be thrown in there for life, or worse.

After a few more minutes of travelling he felt the cart come to a stop, there were muffled voices for a couple minutes and then the sound of doors being opened as the cart started to move again. Kurt knew they must be entering the palace, which meant there was no turning back now. After another couple minutes of moving the cart stopped and Kurt hopped out as quick as he could, being careful so he would not be noticed. Then he made his way towards the building, weaving through the people the same way he weaves through them at the market on the day of a job. He supposes he really shouldn't call it a job, but he does anyway.

Getting into the castle would be much more difficult than getting past the walls, he couldn't just walk in and start wandering the halls, they had guards at the door. He poked around the ground floor outside the building trying to find a forgotten door, or a window or even a drainage pipe. Unsuccessful he headed back to the courtyard, maybe it wasn't meant to be, maybe this was a sign that he should just go back home and starve for the next few days until he had to steal more food.

"Oi! You there boy!" A man bellowed and Kurt whipped around, was he talking to him? "Yeah, you in the fancy coat!" He yelled again pointing a chubby finger at Kurt who quickly walked over to the man.

"Yes sir?" He asked nervously, sure that he was done for and guards were about to take him to the dungeons at any moment.

"Take these to the kitchens, we all need to pitch in and help prepare for the big feast, no one should be slacking off or standing around." He said handing Kurt a heavy basket of food.

"Wait, you mean like the kitchens inside the castle?" Kurt asked hardly believing his own ears.

"No, I mean like the kitchens at the bottom of the ocean. Of course the kitchens in the castle! Where's your head?" He snapped and Kurt nodded apologies running off towards the doors. Apparently he had been wrong, and as long as you're carrying something for the feast you can get into the palace pretty easily.

Once he had dropped the basket in the kitchens, not before stealing a few morsels for himself, he crept into the shadows of the castle and used all his best techniques to remain unseen and unheard. His heart felt like it was beating a mile a minute as he crept down the halls, he didn't even know where he was going and he was anticipating being caught at any second.

"I honestly don't know how to feel Mike." Kurt heard voices drifting down to hall and he frantically ducked behind a suit of armour. The click of expensive boots was echoing down the hall and two figures came into his view. One was taller, with short dark hair and a muscular build, the other was shorter with curly brown hair and a pretty little crown sitting on top of his head. _Prince Blaine. _Kurt resisted the urge to jump out from where he was hiding and spit in the boy's face. An actual royal. One of the scum that neglects his own people standing right in front of Kurt and he couldn't say anything.

"It's going to be fine. Princess Quinn is great and it's not like she can say no." The other one was saying, Kurt's ears perked up eavesdropping in on their conversation.

"That's what I hate about it!" The Prince cried suddenly and spun around. Kurt tried not to jump behind the suit, they were close and he didn't want to blow his cover. "We have to spend the rest of our lives together and we have no say in the matter how is that fair?" Blaine was asking.

"You like Princess Quinn don't you?" Blaine's friend asked.

"Of course but I don't _love_ her." The Prince said stressing the word "love."

"I think you've been spending too long with your nose in the books my friend." The taller boy said placing a hand on his shoulder. "Marriage for love doesn't happen in the real world." Kurt's eyebrows shot up his forehead, he didn't believe in many things not the pitiful leaders of the Kingdom, not the authenticity of things being sold at the market, not even that God, if there even was one, cared about him in this dreadful world but if there was one thing he believed in that was love. Love above anything else and to hear this boy dismissing that as if it was Father Christmas, it broke his heart.

"What an awful place the real world is then." The Prince declared before storming of past where Kurt was hiding, the thief holding his breath. The other boy stood for a moment and then eventually shook his head and left. Kurt waited a few minutes before creeping out of his hiding place and continuing down the hall.

So Prince Blaine was being forced into an arranged marriage to someone he didn't love, Princess Quinn specifically. He almost felt sorry for the young man until he remembered all of the food being hauled into the castle for the feasts and how that much food could feed kids like Stevie and Stacy for weeks. He felt no sympathy for anyone connected to the royal family, that is why he was here anyway, to take something from them. Now more than ever Kurt was determined to get this job done.

* * *

"This is the ring you will be giving to Quinn when you propose. It is the one your father used when he asked me to marry him." Blaine looked up at his mother who was holding a gold ring with a large ruby in the centre and smaller diamonds outlining it. It was a beautiful ring no doubt, but now to know that his own parents probably didn't love each other it just took away any meaning it might have held.

"Thank you mother." He said taking it from her hand obediently. She looked at him with wet eyes and a smile, placing a hand on one of his cheeks.

"My baby, all grown up and getting married." She said mindlessly, probably thinking out loud. Blaine was about to answer back when a wave of yelling came from behind him he turned around just in time to see two large guards carrying a young man who was kicking and screaming.

"Let me go! I'm innocent!" He yelled. Blaine stared at him, there was something about the man, something in his voice or his appearance that made it impossible to look away.

"What is going on here?" The Queen yelled, her tears gone and a serious look on her face commanding respect.

"We found this piece of rubbish in the drawing room, he was looting through the stuff I reckon trying to steal some valuables." The guard on the left answered.

"They're liars!" The boy screamed.

"Why would they lie?" The Queen asked and the boy stared at her for a minute, a look of pure hatred of his face.

"Maybe they're trying to impress you to increase their pay." The man snapped at Blaine's mother. He obviously hated her, for what reason Blaine had no idea.

"We found his bag." A third guard said coming up behind and opening a sac with some silverware, some jewelry and some food. This man was obviously guilty, and he was dressed in all black except for a peculiar looking blue cloak that screamed criminal.

"Is this your bag?" Blaine's mother addressed the thief who looked defeated for a fraction of a second before holding his head high and answering proudly.

"Yes."

"So you were stealing from this palace?"

"Yes."

"So you were lying before when you said you were innocent?"

"Yes." He said staring The Queen down proudly, he obviously knew he was doomed and was trying to go with a bit of dignity. The Queen matched his stare and everything was silent for a long moment then she nodded.

"Well then you are guilty and will be sent to the dungeons. Guards take him away." She commanded and the guards obeyed, this time the thief was silent and didn't resist. "Now where were we?" Blaine's mother asked, her voice much softer as she turned to him. Blaine was still thinking of the thief, now prisoner, who had just been taken away. Blaine had seen a few others try and fail to rob the castle but none of them acted the way that man had. They all looked desperate, pitiful, even deranged at times but the man in the blue cloak had acted like he was proud of what he had done, even if he hadn't succeeded. "Blaine darling, are you all right?" Blaine heard his mother ask and he snapped out of his thoughts to talk to her.

"Better than fine mother." He replied giving her a smile. She smiled back which made Blaine happy, he loved when his mother smiled her real toothy smile and not the tight lipped one she used for guests and other important figures.

"Of course you are now that you're going to get married!" His mother almost squealed. "And to Quinn nonetheless, you couldn't have picked a better bride."

"I suppose you're right." Blaine agreed, because he honestly couldn't think of any girl he knew that he would want to marry more than Quinn. Let it be known though, Blaine knew very few girls.

* * *

Click. Click. Clack. Clack.

Kurt tapped the metal bars of his dirty cell and tried to keep his breathing steady. He didn't want to cry, not with guards and other prisoners around, but every time he thought about his dad his stomach twisted into knots. His father had gone into work that day like any other expecting his son to be home waiting for him like he usually was and now Kurt would be gone without a trace. They hadn't even told him how long his sentence was! He may never be getting out of here.

Tapping and humming to himself Kurt sat on the dirt floor and watched the sun set out the tiny window at the top of the wall. He had already tried to climb up there to see if the bars could come off but there were no grips on the walls, they were smooth. He was going crazy out of boredom and he could only have been in the place for six hours at the most, he was used to always moving, grabbing stuff and going, not getting caught.

He was drifting off to sleep when he heard it, the familiar clicking of boots, and his eyes shot open. He stood up and leaned into the bars looking through them. Strolling along whistling to himself was Prince Blaine, the sight of him made Kurt's blood boil. He had just stood there and watched as Kurt had been taken away, saying nothing. There was something odd about the prince as well, something Kurt couldn't quite put his finger on but he didn't plan on sticking around long enough to find out.

"So you make a habit of visiting your prisoners?" Kurt asked, his voice dripping in sarcasm. Blaine's whistling stopped awkwardly and he turned his head towards Kurt a look of surprise on his face.

"We're a bit short on guards with the feast and everything, I'm just stopping down here to make sure everything's okay." He said calmly.

"Well, I'm pretty sure a group of desperate starving people behind iron bars are relatively harmless." Kurt quipped raising an eyebrow, Blaine looked unimpressed staring blankly back at him.

"I'm just doing my duties, there _are_ some real criminals here." Blaine said looking a bit annoyed at Kurt for talking to him.

"Oh and am I not a real criminal?" Kurt asked a fake pout on his lips. His eyes flickered to Blaine's belt where a ring of keys was hanging, he quickly formulated a plan and hoped he could pull it off.

"Well, you did break the law but it's not like you hurt anyone." Blaine said and Kurt had to contain his anger.

"Hmmm, that's right. I didn't hurt a fly and yet here I am rotting in this cell awaiting death." He said slightly more viciously than intended. He was lucky Blaine hadn't just walked walked away by now, he shouldn't make him angry and push his luck.

"The law is law, if you want something you've got to work for it." Blaine said firmly and started walking away.

"Then what have you been doing all your life Mr. Prince?" Kurt called, his tone much calmer than he felt.

"I have been earning a living-"

"Doing what?" Kurt cut him off with a laugh. The prince gaped at him, his mouth moving up and down but nothing coming out, it was a pathetic sight. "You've been living off of mummy and daddy's money and the last time I checked and where do they get that money? They steal it from their people." Kurt said, The Prince could have him executed right then and there but in the heat of the moment Kurt couldn't bring himself to care. He had been dying to say these words to a royal and if these were his last minutes he was going to make them count.

"My parents haven't stolen anything from anyone!" Blaine said looking angry and taking a few quick strides so that he was right beside the bars of Kurt's cell. A mistake on his part because now Kurt could reach those key's, if he could just distract Blaine for a few more minutes.

"Really? With the size of the taxes I'd say you have a whole kingdom that disagrees." Kurt said leaning closer to Blaine and slipping his hand through the bars, he felt his fingers brush against the metal of the key's and he carefully slipped them off the belt with the practice ease of an expert.

"I'm not going to stand here and be insulted in my own castle!" Blaine yelled.

"Good!" Kurt said, quietly putting the key in the lock and turning, luckily The Prince was too upset to notice. "Because I'm not sticking around much longer." He said. There was a flash of confusion on Blaine's face and then Kurt was flinging the door open and pushing Blaine back. The Prince let out a surprised yelp as Kurt flung him into the cell and locked him in running a few steps before turning back. "Oh Blaine, you simply must be more careful down here next time, after all we are criminals." he sneered, throwing the key's in a nearby bucket as Blaine called for the guards. He ran through the lines of prisoners some cheering him on, some begging to be let out, some dead. He ignored everything and on a rush of adrenaline ran up the stairs and back to the castle promising that that would be the last time he ever saw Prince Blaine.


	2. Chapter 2

**Wow you guys! I'm a bit blown away by the response to the first chapter, thank you so much. This chapter is a little shorter but I hope you like it just as much anyway! **

* * *

Blaine straightened his jacket while he power walked down the hall; a small group of guards following him and struggling to keep up. He didn't have time to deal with this right now and the stress was starting to get to him.

"I need you to close the gates, and don't let anyone in or out until the Fabrays get here. I want all guards very alert, so if anyone sees the run away you grab him and keep him in the dungeon. Someone needs to stay with him at all times. He's smarter than most and the last thing we need is him interrupting the ball or the feast." Blaine commanded. He heard the usual "yes sir" from everyone he was speaking to before he continued down the hall towards the large dinning room his mother was waiting in.

"Oh Blaine what happened? Are you alright?" the woman gushed as soon as he strolled through the wooden doors.

"I'm perfectly fine mother. All's well that ends well." he said with a reassuring smile.

"But it's not over yet is it? The prisoner got away didn't he?" She asked raising an eyebrow that made Blaine feel guilty.

"Well technically yes, but he's still inside the walls. We'll have him soon." He explained optimistically.

"You better, you wouldn't want any trouble to stir up right before your engagement to Quinn." The Queen said reminding Blaine once again of the fate coming his way that he could do nothing to change.

"Of course mother." He said giving her a nod before she walked away to help with some arrangements for the upcoming party. Not only were his family having a massive feast with the Fabrays but they would also be hosting a ball for the richest in the country where it was planned that Blaine would propose to Quinn. Then the Fabrays would stay for a few weeks as they prepared for and had the wedding, and then they would head back to their kingdom leaving Quinn with Blaine to eventually join kingdoms and bring everyone out of poverty. It was the perfect plan, yet Blaine's gut twisted painfully whenever he thought about it. He would never admit it out loud but he had always dreamed of falling in love. Maybe that was foolish of him. Love was for the poor, for those who couldn't afford anything else, but lately Blaine was wondering if it was better to have money, or to be happy. It was a tough question to ask.

"Sir, The Fabrays are here." His honourable page Mike informed him, stirring him from his thoughts.

"Oh well I'd better go and greet them, and would someone please find the missing criminal? I'll be damned if he causes any trouble!" He shouted to the staff as he left the building to greet their guests. When he got outside he took his place next to his father, his mother standing on the other side, and stood tall and proper like he had been taught. A carriage rolled up beside them and King Fabray got out first helping his wife down with one hand and then turning to help his daughter down the step. She lifted up the hem of her long pink dress and took her father's hand before walking over to them and giving Blaine a smile which he returned.

"Russel, Judy, Quinn. So nice to see you!" Blaine's dad greeted them. Blaine bowed to The King and kisses The Queen and The Princess on the hand as they curtsey. None of this is necessary, the two families have been best friends for years, but it's tradition and it's polite.

"I missed you!" Quinn whispered into Blaine's ear, wrapping him in a hug.

"You too." He whispered back. They broke apart and he offered her his arm, she took it and they followed their parents back into the castle. He wondered if she knew what was coming. If she would be surprised or happy or angry. He wondered if she knew people of their class couldn't afford to marry who they love, or if she was clinging to the belief that she'd find her soul mate like he used to. Thinking about it she probably wasn't delusional and she probably would be expecting the proposal eventually. She was a smart girl and as far as Blaine knew she hadn't met many other princes. She probably had it all figured out before he did. Even if she didn't her parents would never let her say no. This was a done deal from the moment their fathers had decided it, and there was nothing either of them could do. Blaine could almost accept it. Almost.

* * *

Kurt was pretty surprised no one had found him yet considering he had been in the castle for almost two days, stealing food and sleeping in a linen closet. He had managed to steal a suit and mask from some unused bedroom, and although he wouldn't consider it the most flattering thing on him it let him blend in with the crowd of similarly dressed men at the ball. Every once in a while he would see a guard march by the hallway or poke his head in the door and he would laugh. It was so easy to avoid detection with so many guests mulling about the castle; Kurt had picked a perfect time to try and escape. As he was scanning the food laid out on the table he felt someone bump into him and quickly turned around to apologize before stopping dead. Standing in front of him was Prince Blaine.

"Oh, I'm sorry I didn't see you there." The prince said with a smile. Kurt struggled to find words. Hiding from guards was one thing but Blaine had seen him up close in the dungeons and was much more likely to recognize him even with the mask on.

"It's no problem." Kurt said trying to pitch his voice lower so he wouldn't be recognized and filched when he forgot to address Blaine with the proper title.

"I'm pretty nervous tonight, must be making me clumsy." Blaine joked and Kurt wished he would just walk away and leave him alone.

"Why's that?" Kurt continued the conversation anyway, as he didn't want to draw more attention to himself by being rude to the Prince.

"I shouldn't be telling you," The prince said and Kurt rolled his eyes. Why would he bring it up in the first place if he couldn't talk about it? "But I need to tell someone so can you keep a secret?" Kurt wasn't going to be keeping any of the royal secrets but having some dirt on the King's only son could help him escape later. Besides, if Blaine was dumb enough to give away information to complete strangers than it's his fault.

"Of course." Kurt told him, still speaking in his lower register.

"I'm supposed to propose to Princess Fabray tonight, that's the point of this ball." Blaine said quietly.

"And?" Kurt prompted, waiting for the punch.

"And- and nothing." The prince said. Kurt already knew that Blaine was proposing to Quinn, he had overheard the conversation in the hallway, but Blaine didn't know that. The public probably had no clue about the engagement.

"Well, why wouldn't you marry Princess Fabray?" Kurt asked trying to save himself from his slip and maybe get Blaine to confide something he could really use against the royal family.

"Because I don't love her that way!" Blaine said looking exasperated. "No one seems to think that's a problem. They expect that just because I'm a prince and she's a princess that we'll be perfect for each other and I honestly like Quinn, she's my best friend, but I can't see myself marrying her." He rambled running his hands over his face.

"Well wouldn't it be a good thing to marry your best friend?" Kurt asked.

"I suppose it's better than marrying someone I dislike but what about romance you know? What about finding your soul mate and loving them forever?" Kurt was surprised at Blaine's questions. He never knew the prince was such a romantic. Then again he had never spoken to him personally, but he had always expected a giant ass and Blaine seemed to be proving him wrong. _He's still letting everyone starve, remember Stevie and Stacy? _A voice in his head reminded him and Kurt stopped thinking about it.

"Well you shouldn't back out now, who knows maybe you'll fall in love with Princess Fabray once you're married." Kurt offered with no sincerity.

"I suppose." Blaine muttered quietly.

"Blaine! There you are dear, it's time." The Queen said excitedly appearing behind Blaine and giving Kurt a polite nod.

"Guess there's no backing out now." Blaine said under his breath before giving Kurt a smile and strutting to the front of the room. He stood on the raised platform in front of the thrones where his mother and father sat, and who Kurt vaguely recognized as King and Queen Fabray were standing off to the side as well. Blaine invited Quinn up on to the stage, taking her hand in his. Kurt really didn't understand what Blaine was so upset about, even he could tell that Quinn was one of the most beautiful girls you could find and she seemed very sweet. He had heard their kingdom is very prosperous and can provide more than enough food for everyone making them a thousand times better than Kurt's own rulers in his eyes. Maybe this marriage was a good thing, maybe it could help the kingdom. He continued to watch the scene unfold before his eyes with a new excitement.

"Um- uh... Quinn," Blaine started obviously very nervous and visibly shaking. "We've known each other for a very long time now and our kingdoms get along so well that this was probably just inevitable. You're my best friend Quinn and I can't think of anyone else I could say this to so..." Blaine let out a breath and shook his head. He seemed to really mean the words he was saying but Kurt had a feeling the general audience would interpret them differently than he meant. "I would like to ask you for your hand in marriage." He finally finished and everyone held their breath.

"The ring." Kurt heard the Queen hiss at her son.

"Oh right!" He exclaimed and rushed awkwardly to get out a large ring with a red stone. "So? Will you marry me?" He asked again.

"Oh Blaine..." Quinn breathed out and for a second Kurt was sure she was going to reject him but then, "Yes." They hugged and their mothers cried and everyone clapped and cheered. Kurt was clapping right along with them when he felt the hands grab him from behind.

* * *

Blaine let out the breath he didn't know he'd been holding as he hugged Quinn. That was it, they were getting married. There was no backing out now, no way around it, and in a few weeks time Blaine would have a wife. He felt like he might be sick. As him and Quinn pulled apart she grabbed his hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. He looked over to her and she offered him a small smile which he returned nervously. Suddenly they noticed a commotion from the back of the hall and Blaine dropped Quinn's hand to go see what all the fuss was about. When he had pushed his way through the crowd of people he saw the scene he had been trying to avoid that night. The escaped thief was struggling in the grasp of a guard and the guard looked like he was having a hard time controlling the criminal.

"You!" Blaine yelled pointing at the thief and recognizing him as the man he had been talking to right before the proposal. How he hadn't recognized him he had no idea. He guessed nerves probably had a lot to do with it.

"Well hello your royal highness, we meet again." The thief said turning to Blaine and stopping his struggle. His tone wasn't nearly as cocky as it had been in the dungeons, and Blaine could hear him breathing heavily from back where he was standing. He looked up and his bright blue eyes met Blaine's.

"What are you doing here?" Blaine demanded unable to break eye contact.

"Enjoying the festivities." The thief answered. Him and Blaine stared at each other for a few long moments before Blaine felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked away from the boy to see Quinn at his side. She was staring at the thief with curiosity.

"Blaine-" she started to speak but was interrupted by a grunt from behind them and screams from the crowd. Blaine spun around to see the thief pulling a sword from the guard's hand and running directly for him. Blaine let out a yelp and the thief grabbed him and held the sword to his neck.

"Nobody move!" The thief yelled and the crowd, including Blaine, went completely still. "I really don't want any trouble but I need to get out of here and you need your prince." He said in a strong voice contradicting his shaking hand gripping Blaine's chest. He started to back out of the room Blaine following his step. When they had left through the doors and were into the vast empty hallway the thief shoved Blaine to the ground and took off after him.

"Guards!" Blaine shouted jumping to his feet and running after him, drawing his own sword. They were both faster than the others and their footsteps rang out through the empty hall. The thief turned a corner and Blaine felt a bit of relief when he realized the corner led to a dead end. When the thief got to the end of the hall he seemed to also realize his predicament and he spun around pointing his sword at Blaine. The Prince was able to knock it out of his hands; albeit, not as easily as he usually is able to defeat his enemies, and those are ones with formal training with a weapon. Blaine was now standing a few feet away from the boy pointing the tip of his sword directly at his throat.

"Do it." The boy said looking Blaine in the eye. Blaine simply stared back. His hand started shaking as he willed himself to do it but he couldn't. He couldn't bring himself to kill the man standing in front of him; something in his gut was telling him this criminal was different and that he deserved another chance. "Kill me now because I'm not going to sit around and wait for death!" The boy urged him once more. Blaine could hear the footsteps of running guards quickly approaching behind them and he lowered his sword.

"Go." He said swallowing the feeling that his stomach was in his throat. The boy looked at him with wide eyes for a second before turning around, opening the window and jumping out. Blaine ran to the window and looked down into the moat where he could see the thief had safely landed in the water surrounding the side of the castle.

"Blaine!" The boy in question spun around to see his father flanked by two guards on each side.

"I... he got away." Blaine stuttered out. His father's gaze shifted to the window and he took three quick strides so that he could join Blaine gazing at the ground below. The thief was no where to be seen, having moved quickly to escape.

"Damn it!" The king yelled. "Can't anybody get anything done around here?" He let out a sigh and started pacing back and fourth, his fingers gripping the bridge of his nose. "Since I can't seem to trust any of you incompetent fools to finish this job I'm going to have to send you out personally Blaine. I'm sorry to do this so close to the wedding but I trust you more than anyone to end this." He said.

"Of course father." Blaine said nodding his head. He couldn't wait to get out of the castle, out of the kingdom maybe. He knew he was probably anxious about the wedding and hoping to postpone it as long as possible, but he also had this feeling that he needed to talk to the escaped thief. He wanted to understand him because at the moment he just doesn't. However, there is also a part of him that doesn't want to catch the boy. He doesn't want to have to drag him back to the castle and watch him get executed in front of everyone. Not that people haven't been executed in his kingdom before but the thief as so young, probably around the same age as Blaine, and it felt so much more personal.

"Come now Blaine, we must get back to the ball and try to clean up this mess." The king said, spun on his heels, and made his way back to where the ball was being held with his guards following behind him. Blaine stayed behind for a minute staring out the window. He thought back to the thief and how he had not been wearing his blue cloak like he had been the first time.

He started searching every room he could think of looking in every possible hiding spot. He had lived in this castle all his life and had played hide and seek too many times to count so he knew the best places to hide away. Sometimes when he was younger he would curl up in a little nook even if he wasn't playing a game and he would sit there four hours enjoying the solitude. He didn't get to be alone much as a child. Everyone was always buzzing around him making sure he was doing his royal duties. Sometimes he felt like he never really got to be a kid, at least not like the kids in the books he read. He read as many books as possible even to this day. They helped him escape the real world for a while and he could pretend all his problems didn't exist.

Eventually, he came to a linen closet and when he peeked his head in he spotted a small pile of things on the floor including the blue cloak. He picked it up and ran his fingers over it. There was silver embroidery at the top just below the hood, and while it was beautiful it was also recognizably meant for a woman. Blaine wondered why a thief would wear such a noticeable item but then remembered the boy had been no ordinary thief. Holding what he assumed was such a prized possession of the boy in his hands made everything all the more real to Blaine. He found himself vowing to return the cloak to the boy even if it meant leading him to his death immediately after. How he would do this though, Blaine didn't know.


	3. Chapter 3

**I'm sorry this took so long, a lot of stuff has happened in my life these last few weeks. That being said, I also cut this chapter short, so the next chapter might be shorter with not much happening but it will be essential to the story. Thanks, hope you enjoy!**

* * *

People were turning their heads and looking down as he rode past. They all seemed so intimidated, and to know he was the one doing the intimidating wasn't very heartwarming. Blaine rarely left the castle. He wasn't one for hunting, or riding, or any other extremely physical sports so he had no reason to. He was trying to remember the last time he had ventured into these parts of the kingdom and he knew it must have been years ago. A lot had changed since then. No one addressed him and no one looked happy. The houses seemed dirtier and decades older than they should, even the smell had changed and not in a good way.

"Look mama, it's the prince!" A young boy yelled and his mother quickly grabbed him, hugging him close to her chest and telling him to be quiet. The whole atmosphere felt like some morbid parade. Mike and two other guards were on their own horses behind him but he knew that everyone's gaze was only on him. No one spoke or even moved until an old woman walked into the middle of the road and stopped in front of him. Blaine and his team all halted while the woman glared at them. She spat on the ground in front of her and the guards behind Blaine were instantly moving to restrain her but he held up a hand to stop them.

"Your highness, she disrespected you and-"

"Let her speak her mind." Blaine interrupted the guard who had spoke. "Well?" He prompted the lady.

"You scum!" She shrieked and Blaine felt his stomach churn knowing that her hate filled tone was directed at him. "You come strolling through on your well fed horses, wearing your expensive clothes, and carrying bags stuffed with food while your people sit here dying from hunger." She continued.

"Ma'am, I'm sure that if your family doesn't have enough to eat there are ways for you to get support." He offered sympathetically.

"No, there's not, because every one in this god forsaken kingdom is just as starving as I am. That is of course unless they live in the palace." She yelled once more and Blaine stopped for a minute. He had heard his father talk about how poor the kingdom was but he never thought it could be this bad. Surely this woman was over exaggerating.

"Ma'am if you will step out of the way, we have royal business to attend to." He said with less confidence or understanding.

"One day, I tell you, the people will overthrow you lot and you just might be the sucker on the thrown." She sneered at him before stepping out of the way. Blaine tried to continue with as much composure as possible, staring directly in front of him with a blank expression. He felt unshed tears burning his eyes as he urged his horse to move faster. When the four of them had reached the forest and were a fair distance away from any townspeople Blaine stopped and tried to calm his emotions.

"Your highness?" Mike asked him gently. He simply shook his head and started to move on. This was one of those moments when he absolutely hated being part of the royal family. People that he didn't know screaming at him, and hating him, and acting scared of him. He despised it all. As ridiculous as it sounds, he often felt jealous of the average citizen in his kingdom. They may not have much but at least they aren't judged solely by the family they happened to be born into. At least they don't have to deal with keeping up an image and running the kingdom. At least they can marry who they want.

What the woman had said might also be true and that scared Blaine. In a few years he would get the throne, and if the people didn't like the way he ran their kingdom they could do something drastic. These were the fears that haunted Blaine every day. He thought about stopping and whipping out the book he had brought along with him to take his mind off things, but it seemed silly to stop this early on. So he kept riding, thoughts of catching a thief distracting him instead.

Kurt had been walking all night. He was soaking wet, and cold, and he had no idea where he was going but at least he had gotten away. His biggest worry is that he had left all his stuff in the castle, including his light blue cloak. He desperately wanted to stop and build a fire so he could get warmed up and try to sleep for a few hours but he was too worried someone was going to catch him and he'd be right back in the dungeons. So Kurt kept walking. He had a lot to think about when he was walking and most of those thoughts involved Prince Blaine. He kept replaying their exchange over and over in his head, imagining the look in the Prince's eyes when he had said "Go." Kurt still didn't understand why he had done it. He was fully expecting the Prince to kill him right there on the spot. Also, his attitude towards his own wedding was puzzling. Kurt had imagined all of the royal family were greedy, selfish people who married for money and were incapable of love. Now, seeing that he was probably wrong to judge them that way was causing some confusion for Kurt.

He felt like he was just about to pass out from exhaustion when he came across a little cottage. He didn't think anyone lived in these parts so he was quite surprised. It was a cute little thing with a garden on the side and laundry hanging up on a line. Maybe he could ask whoever lived there to let him stay for the night. It was better than wandering around aimlessly until he either froze or starved to death. He was actually overwhelmed with the shape of the little home when he got closer. It looked so much nicer than the shacks the village people lived in. He knocked on the solid, wooden door and waited. To his surprise a hole slid open in the door and a pair of dark brown eyes looked out at him.

"Yeah?" A female voice, who he guessed belonged to the eyes, asked sounding impatient.

"Uh, hi." He said.

"What do you want?" She asked.

"May I come in? You have such a lovely home." He said nervously trying to get on this woman's good side.

"Why do you want to come in, are you part of a royal force? Are you going to try to arrest us?" She asked.

"No!" Kurt exclaimed. "I'm actually running from the royal force." He admitted.

"Well then they'll be after you. We can't house a fugitive." She snapped at him and then shut the eye hole in her door.

"Wait!" Kurt yelled banging again. "I just need somewhere to sleep for a few hours. I swear I won't take anything from you and I'll be gone before you wake up tomorrow. Please, I escaped from the dungeons and now I'm just trying to say ahead of-" His sentence was cut short when the door swung open revealing a slender woman with tanned skin and the same brown eyes that were looking through the door.

"Did you just say you escaped from the dungeons?" She asked him.

"Yes?" He answered slowly, unsure of where she was going with this.

"I've never heard of anyone being able to do that before." She said with an astonished look.

"Well, now you have." Kurt said awkwardly. She eyed him for a minute before opening the door wider and walking back into the house. Kurt stood there for a moment not knowing of what to do.

"Come in or don't but don't leave the door wide open." She yelled to him and he quickly entered the cottage shutting the door behind him. It was nice on the inside, much nicer than any of the houses Kurt had ever been in. There were elegantly crafted chairs and beautifully sewn quilts next to a roaring fire. "Sit." The woman commanded handing him a plate of bread and a jar of jam. "Eat." She instructed and Kurt complied right away. "So here's the deal, I don't care what you did to get thrown into the dungeons but I want to know how the hell you managed to get out because I know for a fact you are the only one to have done that."

"It wasn't that hard." Kurt said with his mouth full of food.

"God, swallow first! That's disgusting!" She exclaimed and he did so.

"Look, all I did was grab the keys unlock myself and run out. It was nothing fancy." He explained.

"But how did you get the keys? The guard is always holding them." She asked.

"They were short on guards because they had a big feats coming up so prince Blaine was the one patrolling, I just started talking to him and he came close enough that I could grab them."

"Interesting." The woman said leaning back in her chair. "But then, how did you get outside the walls?" She asked.

"You know, you ask an awful lot of questions and I don't even know your name. How do I know I can even trust you?" He asked.

"I don't know your name." She remarked.

"It's Kurt. Kurt Hummel." He said.

"Whatever, I don't care." She remarked.

"Well I'm not telling you any more until you at least tell me your name." Kurt said putting down the bread, crossing his arms and giving her his best glare. She glared right back for a long time before finally sighing.

"My name is Santana."

"And why are you so interested in how I escaped?" He asked but she stayed silent.

"Hey babe, I picked us some really pretty flowers but I had to convince some bees to let me take them and I think they might be a little mad, so it might be hard for us to get honey for the next couple weeks." Kurt turned toward the voice that just walked into the room. It was a blonde woman who looked at him with blue eyes for a second before asking. "Who are you?"

"He's no one honey." Santana told the woman with a smile and got up to take the flowers. "These are beautiful!" She said in a sweet tone that was vastly different from how she had been addressing Kurt. She then leaned in and gave the other woman a small kiss. Kurt was surprised. He had never seen two women treat each other this way, like they were married. Santana turned and saw the look on his face, immediately glaring at him.

"You got a problem with us you can hit the road." She told him harshly.

"No, no problem." He answered quickly. "It's just... different." He said struggling for the right words to explain it.

"I love Santana the same way any girl loves any boy or any boy loves any girl. There's nothing different." The blonde woman said and Kurt smiled. He liked that idea, it made a lot of sense to him.

"I'm Kurt." He introduced himself.

"Brittany!" She replied enthusiastically taking a seat next to him.

"Kurt's just going to be staying here for tonight and then he's gone. He's a criminal." Santana explained.

"He doesn't look like a criminal to me." Brittany said.

"No, she's right. I stole some food and other things from my kingdom's castle." Kurt admitted.

"Why would you do that?" Brittany asked, her face surprised and full of innocence.

"Because the people of my village are starving and I'm not going to sit around and let that happen." He said defiantly. He truly believed that what he did wasn't wrong, it's wrong for the royal family to be stealing from those who have less than them. He was doing the kingdom a service really.

"I don't think that makes you a bad person, you just wanted to help right? You didn't want to hurt anyone." Brittany said and Kurt faltered for a moment. He had wanted to hurt the royal family in a way, not physically but give a good jab to their ego maybe. That's not what Brittany was talking about though. Was it?

"Yeah, you're right." He responded feeling a little unsure of himself.

"Oh Santana, you should tell him his future!" Brittany said enthusiastically.

"Brittany, he doesn't know!" She said urgently.

"I don't know what?" Kurt asked cautiously.

"Santana is a witch so she can cast spells and tell the future and stuff." Brittany said with a proud smile. Kurt turned to Santana with an astonished look.

"Is she kidding?" He asked quietly, Santana simply sighed.

"No, it's true." She admitted, then sat down in another one of the other wooden chairs. "I'll predict your future but if you tell anyone about this I will turn you into a dung beetle or something equally disgusting." She threatened pointing a finger at Kurt. He just stared at her with wide eyes, still wondering if this is a joke. "Let's see, give me your hand." She told him and he did so.

"Is this going to hurt?" He asked nervously.

"No it's not, shut up and let me work." She placed her thumb in the centre of his palm and closed her eyes. Kurt looked over to Brittany who gave him an encouraging smile. "You are running from the King's men. He has sent his son out to find you-"

"He sent prince Blaine out of the castle?" Kurt asked in shock.

"Don't interrupt me!" Santana snapped before continuing. "Your journey does not end here, in fact-" Suddenly Santana's eyes flew open and she stared at Kurt. Her eyes were wide and filled with fear.

"What? What is it?" He asked frantically.

"I can't tell you." Santana whispered.

"Why not?" He demanded.

"Having the ability to see the future isn't a gift like most think. It is a curse always knowing what is going to happen. I am not living my life like the rest of you I'm just waiting for what I know is coming. There are some things that are not supposed to be known, and they can destroy a person. I will not do that to you." She said and then got up to leave.

"That's it? That's all you're going to give me?" He yelled, furious at her. She had obviously seen something important, something that he needs to know so he can be prepared for when it happens.

"I'll say this, you are special Kurt. After all, you escaped from the dungeons and I never saw you coming here in the first place." She then left the room in a stunned silence Brittany taking his hand in an attempt to comfort him. He didn't understand what she had meant and now he doesn't think he'll be able to sleep at night until he's got it figured out.

That night he made sure to leave Santana and Brittany's house long before dawn without saying a word. When they woke up he had already been walking for hours.

"Your highness how long do you think we will have to look for this runaway before we can give up and pronounce him dead?" Mike asked after a full day of riding through the forest. Blaine was growing slightly impatient with his men who seemed to have given up the search already.

"What makes you think we won't find him?" Blaine snapped turning his torso around to look at him.

"He was skilled enough to escape the dungeons and the walls of the castle I think he must be a professional at this sort of thing." Mike answered and Blaine stayed silent. The thief may have been good, but it was Blaine who let his guard down in the dungeons, and it was Blaine who let him go after the ball. The reason why he did these things was still unknown and troubling to him.

"Face it your highness the thief is probably long gone by-" Another one of Mike's suggestions they head back to the castle was cut off by a loud crash and a grunt.

"What was that?" Another one of the guards asked.

"Let's go see." Blaine said steering horse in the direction of the noise. The path didn't go very far in that direction so the men tied up their horses and continued on foot. "This is Prince Blaine of the royal force, I command you show yourself immediately!" Blaine yelled loudly. Much to his dismay, nobody revealed themselves.

"Maybe it was just an animal." Mike suggested from behind him.

"Maybe." Blaine said, although his gut told him that whatever made that noise was undoubtedly human. They continued on for a few more moments and then they heard the crack of sticks breaking off to their left. Blaine hurried over to investigate what was making the noise and he that's when he saw the thief. They stared at each other for a fraction of a second, both speechless and wide eyed, but then the thief moved and Blaine chased after him. The Prince could see that the thief was running with a limp, and he was sure he would catch up with him soon. Just then the other boy tripped and fell to the ground with a cry of pain. Blaine was then beside him and drawing his sword. "I've got him!" He yelled pointing the tip of his blade at the runaway's chest. Behind him he could hear his men approaching but he didn't take his eyes off the boy laying on the ground.

"No way!" Mike exclaimed with astonishment when he saw the scene before him. "I can't believe you got him."

"I think he's hurt, he wasn't running very well." Blaine said.

"He's also right here and can hear everything you say!" The thief snapped glaring at Blaine. This caught the attention of everyone. "Also, he may have been running funny because he twisted his ankle when he fell out of a tree."

"Why was he in the tree in the first place?" Blaine asked curiously.

"Because he was trying to hide from a group of men who are chasing him." The thief admitted looking annoyed. Blaine made a noise of understanding then drew back his sword and offered his hand. The thief stared at it, looking unsure, then rose to his feet himself hissing when he put weight down on his bad ankle.

"You'll ride with me. I doubt you can get anywhere on that foot but I'm not taking any chances." Blaine informed him.

"Oh I'll be the envy of everyone in the kingdom. A ride on Prince Blaine's horse, all my dreams are coming true!" The thief said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"You should watch your mouth. I could still kill you with one swipe of my sword." Blaine threatened. The thief simply shrugged.

"Go ahead, I'm going to die once we get back to the kingdom anyway. At least if you kill me now I won't have to suffer the humiliation of it being in front of an audience." He said and Blaine looked around to see that they were alone. The rest of the men had started to travel back to the horses.

"Can you please not..." Blaine gave a frustrated huff, searching for the words. "Say stuff like that!"

"Why?" The thief asked. "It's true."

"Well it makes me uncomfortable." Blaine told him.

"Well I'm sorry life isn't always perfect for you _your highness_." The thief said spitting out Blaine's title as if it were an insult. "Some of us have to be uncomfortable every night we go to bed hungry because your damn kingdom is crumbling while you're too busy turning your back because it makes you _uncomfortable_." Blaine felt like he had just been slapped.

"Just start walking." He said and pulled the boy along by his arm. There was no use arguing with some one who was always going to hate his guts and who, as much as he hated it, was probably going to die in the next few days. Blaine honestly didn't know why he wanted this thief to live so badly. He had seen other criminals executed, they weren't very often in his kingdom but they happened. So what made this criminal so different? Blaine hoped he found the answer and a way to save the boy soon, or else it would be too late.


	4. Chapter 4

**Oops! It's been a while! I don't have any excuses other than I was enjoying the summer. But as promised here's the nest chapter.**

* * *

The group of men had started to head back to the kingdom. Mike was riding up ahead and the other knight was riding behind Kurt and Blaine, so they had a bit of privacy. For this reason, Blaine kept trying to strike up a conversation with Kurt, but he refused to talk to the prince. It was like getting attached to a pig before you killed it to make bacon, except in this example Kurt is the pig.

"What's your name? We've been chasing you for this long and I've simply been calling you _The Thief._" Blaine asked. Kurt held his ground and stayed completely silent. No way was he going to give into the prince. "Do you read?" Blaine was asking now and Kurt rolled his eyes. He wanted to tell Blaine that he never learned to read, because the only people who can afford tutors are those who live in the palace, but that would mean talking to him. "I love to read. My favourite story is The Princess and The Frog, are you familiar with it?" Blaine asked and Kurt once again stayed silent. "Okay, I'll tell it to you..." Kurt tried to shut out the prince's voice and focus his attention somewhere else. He was looking around to see if he could find something interesting, when he saw a light blue fabric poking out of one of the bags on the side of Blaine's horse. When Kurt realized what it was he gasped.

"Why do you have my mother's cloak?" He broke his silence and yanked it out of the bag.

"Oh right! I found it in the palace after you escaped the ball." Blaine explained.

"And so you just decided to keep it?" Kurt asked feeling his anger rising. "Of course you would, you're a royal so you're probably used to just taking whatever you want."

"Hey, that's not true." Blaine said sounding offended. "I brought that with me to give to you, anyone else would of had it burned." Kurt didn't say anything. This time it was because he knew Blaine was right, and for the first time on their trip together Blaine was silent.

"Thank you." Kurt said, swallowing his pride.

"I'm not as horrible as you think." Blaine said. "You treat me like I'm the most evil person in the world, but I honestly care about people. Why do you hate us royals so much anyway?"

"When I was eight my mom died." Kurt admitted. Blaine looked surprised, as if he hadn't expected Kurt to answer, but he didn't say anything so Kurt took it as a sign to continue. "My dad's business hadn't been going so well. We didn't have enough money for food, and this is back when food was still affordable, so we were basically dirt poor." Kurt took a deep breathe before he continued, he'd never actually told anyone this story before. "My mom would always give me her dinner or lunch, so that I wasn't hungry. Her body became pretty malnourished and she got sick very easily. Then one winter she got pneumonia, and we took her to the castle to try to get her help. She was dying and we just wanted her to see a doctor, or even just have a cup of soup. Instead they slammed the door in our face and she died a few days later. This cloak was the last thing she gave to me." Kurt kept all emotion out of his voice, but his heart felt like it had dropped into his boots. "You royals were up there eating and drinking to your hearts content around a roaring fire, while I was helping my dad bury my mom. No eight year old should go through that." He finished his story and wrapped the cloak around his shoulders. It wasn't cold, but he could feel his mother's arms embracing him when he wore it.

"I'm very sorry." Blaine said. "It's just-" The prince was struggling to find words. "Everything is so unfair and I wish I could help everybody. I wish no one had to die!" He exclaimed, he sounded choked up and Kurt could see he was getting visibly emotional. The thief reached out and gently rested his hand on the prince's shoulder.

"Life's unfair and everyone dies." He said softly. "The best thing we can hope for is to find people who we love and who love us in return before our time is up."

Blaine turned his torso around, slowing the horse down. He looked a Kurt thoughtfully for a minute before a teary smile broke through. Kurt slowly returned the smile, feeling a little unsure but trusting something in his gut that told him Blaine was more than he thought.

* * *

The men had been riding too slow to reach the palace by sundown, so they stopped to set up camp for overnight. The knights had gone off looking for firewood, while Blaine stayed behind with the thief who's ankle was still injured. Once again, Blaine found himself left alone with this boy and he felt the impulse to get to know him.

"Were you close with your mother?" He asked softly. The thief gave him a surprised look but answered the question none the less.

"Very." He said with a small smile creeping onto his face. "She used to sing to me every night before I went to sleep. When I lost her, life just wasn't the same." The thief seemed distant after that, as if he was lost in the memories of him and his mother.

"What about you?" The thief asked. "Are you close with your parents?"

"Not particularly, but we love each other." Blaine answered with a shrug.

"Who are you close to then?" The thief asked casually, but it catches Blaine off guard and he really has to think about it.

"Quinn, I suppose." He said. "I mean, we've been best friends since we were little so..." He trailed off.

"Well that's good, since you're marrying her." The thief teased and Blaine let out an uncomfortable laugh.

"It is I guess. I mean, that's what everyone keeps telling me." Blaine said.

"Do you want to marry her? If it had nothing to do with politics, or helping your kingdom, or pleasing your parents, would you still marry her?" The thief asked and this time Blaine knew the answer right away.

"No." He admitted. "I really do love her, but not in that way."

"That's sad. I'm sorry." The thief said. It felt odd to Blaine, someone who had far less feeling sorry for him.

"So where were you hiding?" Blaine asked, trying to change the subject.

"In a cottage with two women." The thief answered.

"Sisters?" Blaine asked. The thief shook his head.

"Lovers." He answered.

"Do you mean your lovers?" Blaine asked trying to make sense of the situation.

"No, I mean they were in love with each other." Kurt said as if it was the simplest thing in the world. Blaine pondered that thought for a minute. He had never heard of such a thing, but he didn't see how it could not be possible.

"That's very nice." He said and the thief nodded his head.

"It is."

The two men were quiet for a long while. The question the thief had asked had got him thinking, if politics and parents didn't matter who would he he have chosen to marry? Blaine couldn't think of a single girl he knew that he felt he could spend his life with. In fact, he couldn't think of a single girl that he would want to be romantically involved with for any amount of time. The other knights were always pointing out girls they thought were good looking, but Blaine had never participated in this. He had figured it was simply because he was more mature and didn't want to be shallow, but now he wasn't so sure.

"Kurt." The thief said suddenly, interrupting his thoughts.

"Pardon me?" Blaine asked.

"Kurt." The thief answered.

"I don't know a Kurt, sorry." Blaine replied, his brow wrinkled in confusion.

"No," The thief said with a laugh. It was the first time he has laughed since Blaine had met him and Blaine couldn't help but smile at the sound, even though he had no idea what was funny. "My name is Kurt. Kurt Hummel." The thief– Kurt– explained.

"Oh." Blaine said, feeling a bit stupid. "It's nice to meet you Kurt."

"Likewise." Kurt said with a smile. Blaine smiled back, and for a second he could pretend that this new friend would not be executed as soon as they returned to the castle. It was just for a second, but Blaine was happier in that second than he had been in a long time.


End file.
